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What’s News |
| Good Morning Here’s what we’re watching as the U.S. business day gets under way: |
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U.S. responds to suspected attack on oil tankers in Mideast. The U.S. Navy said it is assisting two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, after a suspected attack that sent oil prices higher. Tensions remain high between the U.S. and Iran following an attack on four vessels in the region last month. |
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Emails stoke worry at Facebook amid probe. The social-media giant uncovered emails that appear to connect Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg to potentially problematic privacy practices at the company, according to people familiar with the matter. The potential impact of the internal emails has been a factor in Facebook’s desire to reach a speedy settlement of an investigation by the FTC, one of the people said. |
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House panel backs contempt for Barr and Ross. A House committee voted to hold Attorney General William Barr and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in contempt of Congress for ignoring its subpoena seeking information about efforts to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. |
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Upsurge of asylum requests tests Mexico. As Mexico pledges to step up its efforts to stop migrants from crossing its territory to reach the U.S., it is facing an increase in asylum requests at its own southern border. |
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High turnover roils immigration policy ranks. President Trump is relying on an increasingly transient cast of characters to carry out his plans. In the past two months, almost every top job on immigration policy has turned over once—and in some cases, twice. |
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Employers help workers build emergency funds to spare 401(k)s. A growing number of employers—such as Levi Strauss, Home Depot and Kroger—are helping workers start emergency savings accounts, reflecting concern over the impact money problems are having on productivity levels and workers’ ability to retire. |
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Is your home at risk of flooding? The data can be hard to find. Individual home buyers have little information about which properties are the most at risk, as flood maps are outdated and don’t take into account future sea-level rises. |
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Huawei’s smartphone business is dealt a blow. The recent U.S. move to blacklist Huawei mainly targets the Chinese giant’s market-leading telecommunications-equipment business. But Huawei also is one of the world’s biggest smartphone makers, and the ban now threatens to cut off its access to crucial phone components and software for devices used by millions world-wide. |
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Huawei presses Verizon to pay for patents. The company has told Verizon that the carrier should pay licensing fees for more than 200 of its patents, further escalating tensions between the Chinese company and the U.S. |
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St. Louis Blues win Stanley Cup. The team wrote the perfect ending to its Cinderella season, erasing more than a half-century of almosts and near misses, defeating the Boston Bruins 4-1 in Game 7 to win the first championship in the team's history. |
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‘This was the biggest mistake of my life.’ John Vandemoer, a former Stanford sailing coach, became part of Rick Singer’s nationwide college-admissions cheating scheme. The coach pleaded guilty and was sentenced Wednesday to one day in prison and six months of house arrest. |
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The Fed needs to be the adult in the economy. Alongside full employment and stable prices, the Federal Reserve has another, lesser known mandate: to be the adult in the economy, writes Greg Ip. That’s especially true at times like now when events are whipsawed by unpredictable actors at home and abroad. |
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As debates near, some candidates are resigned to missing out. A few 2020 presidential candidates are at risk of not making the cut when the Democratic National Committee announces 20 participants today for the June 26-27 debates in Miami. |
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A buyout won't solve Saks owners' real issue. Going private won’t solve the company’s biggest problem: It owns department stores, a segment of retailing that has been losing share for years to discount chains, e-commerce companies and other upstarts. |
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Your book became a hit show? Time for a sequel. Bolstered by starry screen adaptations of earlier titles like “The Handmaid’s Tale” and “Olive Kitteridge,” publishers hope to tap a surge of new interest. |
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Some GOP lawmakers break with party on climate change. A small but growing number of Republican lawmakers are urging action on climate change, driven by shifting sentiment among GOP voters and the effects of global warming. |
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Bringing high-end homes back from the brink. The rich and famous call this Manhattan-based firm when their homes are tainted by smoke, soot, water damage and mold. |
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| What Members Are Talking About |
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| Highlights from our tax coverage |
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1. Deficit spending continues. The U.S. budget deficit grew 39% in the eight months through May as government spending continued to outstrip tax revenue. 2. Uncle Sam targets a work-around. The U.S. Treasury released rules meant to prevent Democratic-leaning states from letting high-income taxpayers avoid a cap on state and local tax deductions. 3. Tech taxes in the crosshairs. Negotiators reported progress on an international agreement revamping the way countries will tax multinational tech profits. Meantime, the Internal Revenue Service won a case over cross-border cost-sharing agreements involving an Intel subsidiary. — Theo Francis |
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Montana Freemen Surrender After FBI Standoff The Montana Freemen, an antigovernment militant group, surrendered peacefully to federal authorities ending an 81-day armed standoff with FBI agents. The group rejected the authority of the federal government, refusing to be evicted from their land outside the town of Jordan, Mont., after foreclosure proceedings were initiated. The group's leader, LeRoy Schweitzer, was sentenced to 22 years in prison. He died of natural causes in September 2011. |
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